Bottled water has had a lot of bad press lately – not least from my esteemed neighbour on this page – and about time too. Our foolish addiction to the stuff has a significant environmental impact. The bottles, whether glass or plastic, have to be manufactured – using non-renewable fossil fuels. More energy is used (along with other resources) to bottle, package, store and ship it.

And all this for a product that is no safer or tastier than the water that flows out of our taps. A writer named Ian Williams, quoted in the excellent What to Eat by Professor Marion Nestle (North Point Press), describes bottled water as “ostentatiously useless”.

If you are addicted to bottled water, I beg you to conduct the following experiment. Take two bottles, one empty and one containing your store-bought water. Fill the empty bottle with tap water, then refrigerate both overnight. Overnight chilling brings them to identical temperatures and allows any odour of chlorine (a harmless and essential anti-microbial) to dissipate.

In the morning, get someone to pour the waters into two glasses without telling you which is which. If your blind tasting reveals no appreciable difference, quit your expensive, environmentally destructive habit on the spot.

What to do with the bottles you already have? Refill them with tap water and keep them in the fridge. If you mistakenly believe you need all-day hydration, carry one with you when you go out. If you have a garden, cut off the bases and sink the bottles neck-down into holes next to your plants: water poured in there reaches the roots more efficiently than water on the ground. If you make stock for freezing, pour it into the bottle (but don’t fill all the way) through a funnel.

Whatever you do, please quit that habit. It’s doing you no good. And it’s cruel to the planet.

Explore Food & Drink

• Gordon Ramsay

• Heston Blumenthal

• Recipes

• Wine

• Real Food

• Anjum Anand

• Eating Out

• Video Recipes

Times Recommends

• How to season a wok
• Chicago Rib Shack hits back at its critics
• Gordon Ramsay: Indian barbecue